Admissions: Post-Degree Options

Nurse Educator Certificate Option (NECO)

This is a 12-credit graduate certificate program that prepares its graduates with the following competencies:

• Incorporate technology into curricula and educational programs
• Develop curricula based on the mission, goals, framework and program outcomes of the program and institution
• Define course objectives and content consistent with program outcomes
• Organize content and learning experiences according to accepted principles of learnin
• Plan appropriate learning experiences
• Design instructional strategies, teaching materials, and educational technology to help achieve course objectives
• Use appropriate evaluation instruments to assess learning and achievement of course objectives and program outcomes
• Use information from program evaluations in planning instruction and improving the process
• Enact best practices in nursing education
• Assess own knowledge and skills and implement plans for lifelong learning/professional development
• Use current research findings and scholarly works in nursing education
• Use knowledge gained through clinical practice to maintain and improve nursing curricula
• Consult with others within and outside of the discipline to enhance the development of interdisciplinary educational teams
• Demonstrate cultural competence in classroom and clinical settings

The program is comprised of four 3-credit courses which can be completed in any sequence. In addition, the student can enroll during any of the four academic sessions in a 1-3 credit teaching practicum. The course descriptions and session in which each is offered are as follows:

Apply for Admission

Funding

FALL SEMESTER

NR110.540 Teaching Strategies in Nursing (3 credits) (52 didactic hours) Course description: The principles underlying the assessment and teaching of adult learners will be examined and applied to clinical and classroom settings in both academia and practice environments. Selected learning theories and learning style models will be examined. Emphasis is placed on the selection and application of practical teaching strategies to diverse learners. Innovative teaching strategies, use of media, and distance education technology are addressed.

SPRING SEMESTER

NR110.830 The Evolving Roles of the Nurse Educator (3 credits) (52 didactic hours) Course description: The purpose of this course is to provide the learner with an overview of the evolving roles of the nurse educator within the context of an ever-changing health care system and educational environment. The focus is on the educator as a teacher, collaborator, researcher/scholar, and practitioner/scholar. It is anticipated that, at the end of the course, the learner will have formulated a personal working philosophy of nursing education/roles of the nurse educator.

SUMMER SEMESTER

NR110.542 Educational Evaluation: From Individual to Program (3 credits) (52 didactic hours) Course description: The principles guiding evaluation in nursing academia will be examined. Emphasis will be placed on the role of administrators, faculty, students and communities of interest in the evaluation process. Methods, techniques, and strategies used to conduct assessment of individual student performance in a variety of settings and evaluation of overall program effectiveness will be analyzed. Aspects of faculty evaluation will also be explored as they relate to appointment, promotion, and tenure. Accreditation standards from the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE), the National League for Nursing Accreditation Commission (NLNAC), and selected specialty organizations will be discussed.

NR110.638 Curriculum Theory and Design (3 credits) (52 didactic hours) Course description: This course focuses on the underlying philosophic and theoretical foundations that inform curriculum design and practice. The underlying competing philosophical and practical perspectives of curriculum design are full of contradictions, challenges, uncertainties and directions. Participants in this course will critically analyze the competing frameworks and perspectives as a background for critiquing and designing nursing curricula and courses. This course is about what we teach, why we teach, who we teach, how we teach, and the ever changing context in which we teach. Attempts to 'revolutionize' nursing curricula in the 1990s did not happen. Participants in this course will be challenged to think critically about ways to transform and revitalize nursing curricula.

FALL, INTERSESSION, SPRING, SUMMER

NR110. 543 Teaching Practicum (1-3 credits) (14 to 52 didactic hours; 56 to 168 clinical hours) Course description: This course is designed to meet the needs of the individual leaner with regard to clinical and/or classroom experiences. The faculty mentor works with the learner to develop goals and learning experiences relevant to the educational setting. The clinical experience may be with students enrolled in didactic courses, in laboratory settings, or in patient care settings; the content or setting will be one that matches the student's area of advanced practice specialization, for example, adult health nursing, pediatric nursing, psychiatric nursing. Whenever possible the patient care setting will be in an agency which serves the medically underserved. Course preceptors will be full-time faculty with expertise in the student's area of advanced practice specialization.

CERTIFICATION

The graduates of the NECO will be eligible to sit for the NLN Certified Nurse Educator examination once they have met the eligibility requirements, which are: (Option A) licensure as an active registered nurse in the US or its territories; a master's or doctoral degree with a major emphasis in nursing education; nine or more credit hours of graduate-level education courses; two years or more of full-time employment in the academic faculty role within the past five years; or (Option B): licensure as a active registered nurse in the US or its territories, a master's or doctoral degree in nursing (with a major emphasis in a role other than nursing education); and four years or more of full-time employment in the academic faculty role within the past five years (www.nln.org).

Apply for Admission

Funding